The Michigan Daily-Friday, May 7, 1982-Page 15 REAGAN SUPPORTS SCHOOL PRAYER, TAX CREDITS Social issues resurface By the Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) - For a year, hardly a peep was heard in the White House about the social issues on which Ronald Reagan campaigned. Now, one after another, they are surfacing. School prayer, tuition tax credits, a balanced budget amendment: They are buzz words finding renewed places in the president's vocabulary. BUT THERE ARE few signs Reagan will be suc- cessful if he tries to push any of there issues through quickly. In fact, there are few signs he is even trying to do that, in the view of both Democrats and conser- vative Republicans. Last month, the president flew to Chicago and told Roman Catholic educators he would support a tax credit based on private school tuition. Soon, he said, he would make a formal recommendation to Congress. At the time, aides said he first would consult with members of Congress and then sehd to Capitol Hill proposed legislation. The consultations are still pen- ding, but one White House official, requesting anonymity, said the proposal may be introduced by the end of this month. CONGRESSIONAL OBSERVERS think there is lit- tle chance such a measure will be approved this year. But the White House aide, stressing the president's support for it, insisted "this is a serious proposal, not a sop to the interest groups." Today is the day Reagan declared "National Day of Prayer" and aides prepared for him a statement in support of a constitutional amendment that would permit voluntary group prayer in public schools. Prayer in public schools was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1962. Ever since then it has been a rallying issue of many conservative movements. THE BALANCED BUDGET amendment, which would require a 60 percent majority in Congress to approve any budget that included deficit spending - except in wartime - has been mentioned by Reagan several times in the past week in public appearances. It barely saw the light of day in 1981. Larry Speakes, the chief deputy White House press secretary, said such issues, along with anti-abortion measures and proposed prohibition of school busing to achieve racial integration, "were put on the back burner last year." "There was some disappointment in the conser- vative community that we had not moved quicker," said one White House source. THE DELAY ALLOWED the House and Senate to concentrate on the president's economic recovery program. But that also meant that if they came up during the second year of the congressional session - this year - the senators and representatives would be facing particularly controversial legislation during an elec- tion year. One Senate source, asking anonymity, said Senate majority Leader Howard H. Baker, R-Tenn., was reluctant to bring them up for that reason. "It's tough in an election year for moderate Republicans to have to deal with a lot of these touchy issues," hesaid. Reagan supports proposal for school prayer WASHINGTON (AP) - President Reagan, declaring he wants to "restore a freedom our constitution was always meant to protect," called Thursday for an amendment to allow voluntary group prayer in public schools. "No one must ever be forced or coer- ced or pressured to take part in any religious exercise, but neither should the government forbid religious prac- tice," the president told a gatherine of religious leaders during a ceremony in the Rose Garden. "THE AMENDMENT we'll propose will restore the right to pray," Reagan did not say precisely what language he believed such an amendment should contain, but he said a specific proposal would be submitted to Congress soon. He sked his audience, which included, Moral Majority leader Jerry Falwell, to work for the measure. "Changing the Constitution is a mammoth task," said Reagan, speaking from a podium under a hot sun. "It should never be easy but in this case I believe we can restore a freedom that our Constitution was always meant to protect." THE PRESIDENT said religious values were "deeply pmbedded in our national character," adding, "our country embraces those principles by design and we abandon them at our peril. "Yet in recent years, well-meaning Americans in the nsme of freedom. have taken a freedom away. For the sake of religious tolerance they have forbidden religious practice in our public classrooms," he said. "No one will ever convince me that a moment of voluntary prayer will harm a child or threaten a school or state. But I think it can strengthen our faith in a Creator who alone has the power to bless America," he added. F1* pe out P Photo, Flipped out No, it's not water ballet, and it's not a new diving9technique: Charlie Miller, of Lincoln, Nebraska, purposely lets go of the throttle on his Jet-Ski while out for a spring spin on Pawnee Lake. The ski shuts down automatically when no driver is at the helm. YOUR BSN IS WORTH AN OFFICER'S COMMISSION IN THEARY Your BSN means you're a professional. In the Army, it also means you're an officer. You start as a full-fledged member of our medical team. Write: Army Nurse Opportunities, P.O. Box 7713, Burbank, CA 91510. ARMKY NURSE CORPS. BE ALLYOU CNBE.